See beauty through users’ eyes…

Last week I was walking in Prospect Park, in Brooklyn. This is my usual running place but I decided to run to the Prospect Park Lake and then walk back to enjoy the last warm days.

Now, tell me.

What do you focus on when walking? The road? Street? Destination? Sometimes even your phone, so you don’t pay attention to other people and cars?

I do that all the time.

But that time in Prospect Park was different.

I didn’t have a particular focus, I was looking at the space far away, trying to observe nature and notice details… And then I saw everything.

Tall trees with yellowish leaves ready to fall down, blue sky, green lawns crowded by couples, dogs and children; and people that usually look big but now look so small standing next to the enormous trees.

It’s wonderful how slight alteration of your focus can change the whole view. And what even more beautiful is that it’s always here. We can see it whenever we want, just need to shift our angle.

How does it relate to UX?

I, as a human being, tend to narrow down the scope and see only what I want to see. However, I, as a UX designer, can’t be biased and should be open-minded.

In UX, users let me focus on things I’ve never thought about, so I can see the whole picture. It’s like when a photographer takes pictures to show you his perception of the same park view.

UX designers should see a product through users’ eyes like we see the beauty through photographers’ lenses.

Thank you for your time!

Happy UX Designing!

Nastya Kvak